


Coming In

by TransConnorDetroit



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Coming Out, Cuddling & Snuggling, Father-Son Relationship, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gay Gavin Reed, Gen, Jeffrey is a good dad!, M/M, Trans Gavin Reed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-04
Updated: 2020-03-04
Packaged: 2021-02-23 09:34:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,681
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23009398
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TransConnorDetroit/pseuds/TransConnorDetroit
Summary: After Gavin’s recent evasiveness, Jeffery is worried. What could his new son possibly think to hide from him?
Relationships: Jeffrey Fowler & Gavin Reed, Leo Manfred/Gavin Reed
Comments: 2
Kudos: 58





	Coming In

It wasn’t the first time that Gavin had come home late. Gavin was an adult, of course, an adult who had classes, but until two weeks ago, the boy had always come home right after. 

So it wasn’t so much that Jeffrey begrudged the boy freedom or friends, but that he was prone to worry, that he had noticed the recent trend. And noticed how Gavin seemed to dodge any and all questions on the matter. 

About two hours had passed since Jeffrey came home at 7:15 pm. Two hours spent with a heavy weight in Jeffrey’s stomach. 

And worry had shifted to anger as soon as he spied the smirk on Gavin’s face as he waltzed through the front door. Well, maybe not a smirk, but it was a smile that certainly wiped itself off of Gavin’s face as soon as he caught Jeffrey staring straight at him. 

“Where were you?” Jeffrey asked, his hands crossed tightly over his chest. He tried to keep the anger that had festered inside of him out of his voice, twisting it into disappointment. 

Gavin winced. “Nowhere. Sides, weren’t you working late? What does it matter?” The double hoodie said Gavin had planned to be out long in the cold, as well as the slight flush on Gavin’s cheeks. At least, Jeff hoped. The flush could have been from other things, not that he smelled anything on his breath. And yet… the way Gavin moved, unable to meet his eyes and shifting his feed, gave Jeffrey pause. 

“It doesn’t matter that I was working late. And who were you with? You know the rules; I need to know if you’re leaving the house.”

Gavin’s lips puckered in a frown. “I wasn’t with anyone. Just wanted to clear my head and shit, and I guess I lost track of time.”

“I’ve been home for two hours.”

“... Had a lot of thinking to do?”

“Were you drinking?” 

Gavin actually laughed, and Jeff felt the tension deflate from him. It took being a parent to learn that someone’s laughter could melt all of his stress away. Even if said laughter came from a currently cocky little shit. “Yeah; I was drinking the weed real bad, well as smoking some mad alcohol. Gets me shitfaced on the MJ. Almost as good as my weekly shots. Of heroine.” 

Jeff rolled his eyes. Gavin had stepped a bit closer now, and he couldn’t smell anything on his breath, either way. “Ok, ok, smartass. Knock it off. Just… text me next time you need a walk, ok? I don’t need a heart attack before I’m 50.” 

“Okayyyyy.” Gavin huffed, sticking out his tongue. 

Reaching out, Jeff grabbed his face. Gavin’s Testosterone injections had already given him a bit of stubble, which Gavin was way too lazy to shave, and Jeffrey brushed the pads of his thumbs against it, memorizing the feeling. He placed a quick kiss to Gavin’s forehead. “I mean it. Please, don’t worry me like that again sweetheart. I don’t know what I’d do without you.” 

Gavin swallowed, turning his eyes down to his shoes. “Ok Dad. I won’t.”

———————————

The next morning, as Jeffrey prepared breakfast for both himself and Gavin, he watched as Gavin entered the little dining room. The boy’s hair was mussed up from sleep, red marks on his face from where he had clutched a pillow to himself. He still wore a thick hoodie from the night before, his fists safely tucked inside of his pocket, as well as blue plaid pajama bottoms that trailed on the floor as he walked. He looked like the little boy that Jeffrey had never gotten the pleasure of knowing. In moments like those, when Gavin looked so vulnerable, all Jeffrey wanted was to scoop him into his side and never let go. Of course, Gavin would hate that, so he refrained. 

Instead, Jeff smiled at him. “You know, there’s a movie tonight. That Avengers thing that you love so much. We should go check it out.”

“Oh? Tonight tonight? I have class.”

“Until 5:30. I can pick you up and we’ll have dinner, then the movie?” 

“Don’t you have work?” 

“They let me off at some point, Gav.” He couldn’t help but be hurt. It seemed like all Gavin wanted was to avoid him. 

“I thought you were sposed to live there. Kinda like a teacher!” He stuck his tongue out at him, and Jeff rolled his eyes. 

“Do you want to go, Gavin?”

Gavin only hesitated a little. “Yeah! Of course!”

“Then 5:30 it is.”

————————————-

At 3:30, Jeffrey got the first text. “Not feeling too well.” Plus a frowny face.   
“I’m sure you’ll feel better soon.” Jeff shot back. He had a bit more work than he had planned, and more than a small part of him had been looking forward to his time with Gavin. Part of him said that Gavin just didn’t want to spend the time with him, given how convenient the illness was. Jeffrey pushed that part down. 

3:50 came with a “Feeling real sick” with a rather vivid barfing emoji. Jeffrey considered putting his phone on mute. 

Finally, at 4:15, came a frowny face with “Sorry; too sick to go. Won’t need you to pick me up; Ted is giving me a ride back.”

“Do you need me to bring you dinner, kiddo?”

“Not hungry. Sides, there’s food in the fridge. See you soon.”

“Not so soon; if you’re all set, I might as well keep working. That way we can spend time later :).” 

“Ok.” 

Jeffrey replied “Alright; Love you.” With a heart. Gavin left him on read. 

Normally, Jeffrey would have used the extra time to work late on the always-present pile of paper on his desk like he said. But as the clock struck 5:40 pm, he could hardly focus on anything. It took him two minutes to decide to surprise Gavin with his company, and another five before he headed over to the local mini mart to pick up ginger-ale and crackers and soup, as well as the first Avengers movie and one of the bug-eyed stuffed animals that Gavin insisted were cute. He might as well pamper Gavin, even if the kid insisted he was too old for it half the time. 

By the time Jeffrey pulled into the driveway, he was more than a little pleased with himself. Gavin would love the surprises. 

Any good feelings drained away when Jeff saw the car parked in the driveway. It was an older model, red from either paint or rust, having suffered more than its share of wear and tear, and certainly not Ted’s white sedan (that belonged to his mother, in actuality). 

The surprise quickly morphed to hurt. While he didn’t mind if Gavin wanted to spend time with new friends, it certainly hurt to be so blatantly lied to and cast aside. He opened the door, almost forgetting to bring in the purchases from the store. It hurt to look at them, actually, and Jeff set them down in the hallway before following Gavin and a Stranger’s voices to the family. 

The scene didn’t make sense at first. Gavin was in a man’s lap. The man, or the kid, once Jeff got a better look, was a mix of lanky and scrawny, with sandy brown hair and a scruffy beard. He didn’t seem to notice Jeff, too wrapped up in whatever Gavin was saying as the TV blared in the background. 

Gavin noticed. His head bobbed up, sharp intake of breath audible even over the TV. “Dad.” 

Jeff had expected fear when he confronted him. Guilt, too, and maybe shame. Not panic. 

And yet, Panic was the only way to describe how Gavin froze. How his hands formed white claws, and how his body trembled in the other boy’s arms. 

The other boy looked up, and the defensive rage that warped his face made Jeff pause. He knew that expression; it was one he had worn countless times, hidden just below the surface, when Gavin told him about his biological parents. 

“Gavin.” He said evenly. “Meet me in the kitchen? I just want to talk.” 

He waited the ten minutes it took for Gavin to come in. He tried not to pick up on the hushed voices, or the hiccup of tears that Jeffrey had grown all too familiar with. And for Gavin’s sake, he didn’t comment on the watery sheen still coating his eyes when he finally padded in to talk. 

Jeffrey motioned to the chair across from him, and Gavin sat. Gavin studied the fake wood grain. 

“Is he your boyfriend?” He asked quietly. Unbidden, an image from years before resurfaced. Then, Jeffrey had been the one in Gavin’s position. He tried to pull on the fear and the shame he had felt. The last thing he wanted was to put Gavin through what he had suffered. 

Gavin nodded. 

“How long have you two been together?” He tried to keep the tone casual, conversational. It felt wooden even to him. 

“A-about a month.”

“I wish you had brought him home sooner. He seems like a nice kid.” Well, not really. Except for the way he protected Gavin. Jeffrey could respect that. 

“You don’t… care?”

“Why would I, baby? You can love whoever you want.” He reached across the table, taking Gavin’s hand into his own. It was small compared to his, and still so soft. Precious. 

“Not everyone thinks that. You- you know I’m gay, right? No girls, only dudes. No chance of me getting that respectable het marriage.”

“And why would I care? I’m gay, too.”

“Most cis people don’t think trans people can be gay.” Gavin swallowed. “I just- I didn’t- didn’t want you to think I was a fake.” 

Jeffrey stood up, and in a moment he was by Gavin’s side, and in another, Gavin was in his arms. “Don’t you ever think that, baby. You’re my son, damnit. Now...” a smile crept over his face. “Why don’t you introduce me to your new boyfriend?”


End file.
